Bucs' Rookie RB Finds Little Space Against Stingy Falcons

Tampa Bay's Doug Martin scored twice on the ground but only managed 50 yards total in the Bucs' loss to Atlanta.

MICHAEL WILSON | THE LEDGER

By RICK BROWNTHE LEDGER

Published: Monday, November 26, 2012 at 1:34 a.m.

Last Modified: Monday, November 26, 2012 at 1:34 a.m.

TAMPA | Doug Martin took handoff after handoff Sunday looking for a little daylight needed to make a big play against the Atlanta Falcons. But all he found were big bodies instead.

Martin would go right against the Falcons defense, only to be hit at the line of scrimmage.

Martin would go left against the defense but had little success there as well.

The Bucs would try to squirt Martin up the middle but to no avail.

This routine played out all game for the rookie first-round pick out of Boise State. After entering the game with the third-highest rushing total (1,000 yards) in all of football, Martin finished the game with 50 yards on 21 carries, his second lowest total of the year. His 2.4 yards per carry was his lowest of the season.

"They loaded the box," Bucs quarterback Josh Freeman said. "They did a lot outside of their tendencies. When you contain a guy as explosive as Doug that's saying a lot."

Even with his 50 yards, Martin was able to move up the team's running back chart.

Martin leaped into the top 10 for most yards in a season for the Bucs. He passed Errict Rhett's 1994 total and Warrick Dunn's 1998 total to move into eighth place. He also moved to second place for most rushing yards in a season by a rookie. He trails Carnell "Cadillac" Williams' 2005 total of 1,178 yards by 128 yards. Also, his nine rushing touchdowns set the franchise record for most rushing touchdowns by a Bucs rookie in team history. He entered the game tied with Lars Tate (1988) and Rhett (1994).

Knowing how he's done this season, the Atlanta defense felt it had something to prove.

The Falcons entered Sunday's game with the 26th-ranked defense against the run. They had answered the questions all week about playing against a multi-talented rookie such as Martin. The Falcons said all the right things during the week but the defense was waiting for this game.

"I like him," said cornerback Dunta Robinson, who suffered a head injury after ramming into Martin for a 1-yard loss in the third quarter. "I think he's a good, young running back. I'm just not into all of the hype. Let's just play football; make people earn everything they get. We definitely had a chip on our shoulder and we definitely came out here and played like it."

Martin's longest run of the day was 10 yards. He was the only Bucs back to run the ball on Sunday.

"I thought that our run defense played very well," Falcons coach Mike Smith said. "(Martin) is an outstanding running back that had over 1,000 yards coming into this game. We knew it was going to be one of our musts and we did a nice job with our run defense. I thought we played the run extremely well, controlled the line of scrimmage. That is an outstanding running back."

<p>TAMPA | Doug Martin took handoff after handoff Sunday looking for a little daylight needed to make a big play against the Atlanta Falcons. But all he found were big bodies instead.</p><p>Martin would go right against the Falcons defense, only to be hit at the line of scrimmage.</p><p>Martin would go left against the defense but had little success there as well.</p><p>The Bucs would try to squirt Martin up the middle but to no avail.</p><p>This routine played out all game for the rookie first-round pick out of Boise State. After entering the game with the third-highest rushing total (1,000 yards) in all of football, Martin finished the game with 50 yards on 21 carries, his second lowest total of the year. His 2.4 yards per carry was his lowest of the season.</p><p>"They loaded the box," Bucs quarterback Josh Freeman said. "They did a lot outside of their tendencies. When you contain a guy as explosive as Doug that's saying a lot."</p><p>Even with his 50 yards, Martin was able to move up the team's running back chart.</p><p>Martin leaped into the top 10 for most yards in a season for the Bucs. He passed Errict Rhett's 1994 total and Warrick Dunn's 1998 total to move into eighth place. He also moved to second place for most rushing yards in a season by a rookie. He trails Carnell "Cadillac" Williams' 2005 total of 1,178 yards by 128 yards. Also, his nine rushing touchdowns set the franchise record for most rushing touchdowns by a Bucs rookie in team history. He entered the game tied with Lars Tate (1988) and Rhett (1994).</p><p>Knowing how he's done this season, the Atlanta defense felt it had something to prove.</p><p>The Falcons entered Sunday's game with the 26th-ranked defense against the run. They had answered the questions all week about playing against a multi-talented rookie such as Martin. The Falcons said all the right things during the week but the defense was waiting for this game.</p><p>"I like him," said cornerback Dunta Robinson, who suffered a head injury after ramming into Martin for a 1-yard loss in the third quarter. "I think he's a good, young running back. I'm just not into all of the hype. Let's just play football; make people earn everything they get. We definitely had a chip on our shoulder and we definitely came out here and played like it."</p><p>Martin's longest run of the day was 10 yards. He was the only Bucs back to run the ball on Sunday.</p><p>"I thought that our run defense played very well," Falcons coach Mike Smith said. "(Martin) is an outstanding running back that had over 1,000 yards coming into this game. We knew it was going to be one of our musts and we did a nice job with our run defense. I thought we played the run extremely well, controlled the line of scrimmage. That is an outstanding running back."</p><p>But the Falcons controlled him and thus the game.</p>